Fall Into Sleep  Part I
by RuinzOfBlood
Summary: The truth hurts...


'_You start to die the day you are born.'_

Her eyes were swollen from hours of crying, and yet they held a bit of uncertainty – a bit of emptiness. She looked across the river, and locked gazes with a crow. It cocked its head to the side, and stared back at her. It cawed, and then took off in flight. Its wings causing a slight flow of air to rush against her face. The sun was beginning to set, probably explaining why the crow took off. Of course, she was not an expert on the avian species.

Her bangs fell in front of her eyes, as she let out a sigh. She suddenly felt her chest slightly constrict, as if somebody was behind her. She quickly glanced behind her, and gave a sigh of relief once she realized it was just Lee. He sat next to her, and said nothing. After minutes of silence, he spoke, "When I was little, I always used to play in the rose bushes. And, I always came out scraped up. I was always fascinated by roses. How can something to beautiful be hidden behind something so hideous? I came to the conclusion that roses earn their perspective beauty, by being able to overcome that obstacle."

She let her friend's words sink in. She didn't look at him, however, because she did not want him to know that she had been crying. Although, it was probably obvious. In a quiet voice, she asked, "Nice realization. But…what brought it up?"

"Honestly?" Lee paused momentarily, "I don't really know. You just seem down. Like you have something on your mind. Something that's bothering you, I guess."

"Can't think of anything."

"You may be a master at weaponry, but you are a novice when it comes to lying." Lee looked at the setting sun. "I already know you were crying. I can tell by your eyes, by the way your aura feels."

Tenten dropped her hands on her lap, finally giving view of her face. "I suppose everybody has a different vibe, or feel, to them when they're feeling a certain way."

"Yeah. So, why were you crying?" Lee asked curiously.

Tenten let out a nervous laugh, "No reason, really. Just one of those days…one of those heinous days."

"Must've been really bad, if it made you cry like that." Lee commented. "Seven years I've known you, and I've never seen you cry."

"Nor have I."

They both turned their heads, to see their other teammate leaning against a tree three feet away – his arms crossed over his chest. He raised a brow, nonverbally asking them to fill him in on what was going on. Lee and Tenten exchanged a brief glance. "Well?"

"I don't know, to be honest with you. I just came here and sat down, and just talked with her." Lee replied.

"Why were you crying?" Neji asked, directing his question towards Tenten.

"You know how bad deceit hurts, how it can shake your entire world? Making you rethink about everything, because you don't know what to believe anymore?" Tenten said softly, picking at the grass. "Seems so surreal. I'm hoping that Tsunade will jump out and yell 'SURPRISE!' I'm hoping that somebody will tell me that this was all just a cruel joke. What's worse, is that I know that that isn't going to happen. Because it's all too real to be some kind of joke. Earlier today, I found out about the whereabouts of my mother. I was filing papers for Tsunade, and a folder had fallen onto the floor. I picked it up, and looked inside – out of my own curiosity.

"My mother had given birth to me, just half a mile outside of the village. Orochimaru crossed paths with her. And…he killed her…he killed his own sister. Someone heard the screams of my mother, as she was being slaughtered. That person came to my rescue. That's the only reason I wasn't killed that night."

Her two teammates were speechless. Tenten lifted up her hair, to reveal the skin on the back of her neck. Lee and Neji looked in horror. She let her hair fall back to its original position. "That's why I've been crying."

"Does anyone know that you have that…?" Lee asked.

"No." Tenten shook her head.

"Could I have a couple minutes to talk to her Lee?" Neji asked his face full of worry.

"Of course. Um…I'll be at the ramen place. I'll meet up with you guys later on, then." Lee said, as he walked away from the two.

Silence filled the air, again. The only sound came from Neji, as he sat next to Tenten. He couldn't imagine how his dearest friend was feeling at the moment, much less what she was thinking. Her head must feel like a whirlwind of thoughts. "What are you feeling right now?" Neji asked.

"What scares me is, I don't know what I'm feeling. I don't know if what I'm feeling is real, or not." Tenten whispered, her knees drawn up against her chest. "I don't know…not anymore. It's like I have no one to rely on. No chance on finding a soul mate. I have nothing."

"You have so many people who care, Ten."

"I doubt the one person I've had my eye on for years, cares." She sighed. "I doubt anybody does."

"Who's the person?"

Tenten looked at her knees, and closed her eyes. "You."

"I've felt the same way, believe it or not. What you feel for me, is mutual. You're still the same person I first met seven years ago, when we were 11."

"_Was_." Tenten said softly, tears pouring down her cheeks – again.


End file.
